{review} Layla's Cuddle Clone; Ordering Process

I shared the photos of Layla's Cuddle Clone on Instagram on Monday and thought I would do a review/post on how the order process went! This is NOT a sponsored post in any way.  I discovered Cuddle Clones quite a few years ago but never felt like I should spend $250 on a stuffed version of Layla. But, once I was no longer living with Layla, I kept thinking about getting one so I could always have her with me.

 

Fun Fact: I was terrified of dogs until Layla. I used to not go to people's houses if they had a dog and one time when I was younger I stayed in the car instead of going into my cousins' houses because they had a dog, ha ha. I'm still nervous around new dogs but get over it pretty quickly. 

Layla came into my life in June 2013 after one of my cousins adopted her (I lived with two cousins from Spring 2013 - Fall 2017.) The one who bought the house sold it and I moved back in with my parents before buying my house in 2018. It’s hard not seeing her every day so I used to steal her for a couple of days at a time or watched her when my cousin went away. COVID made that difficult because I didn’t want to risk either of us transporting the virus (even though he barely went anywhere either.)  Prior to our most recent visit - when I took these photos - I hadn't seen her since August! And before that it was February.

 

During Cuddle Clones' Black Friday sale I decided to splurge! I used photos from when we first got her, before all the gray. She was about four/five in the photos I sent and she's turning TWELVE in just under two weeks. Now, even though I can’t see her all the time, I can look over and see her likeness sitting on a bench in the living room.

 

What is a Cuddle Clone?

A Cuddle Clone is a handmade, custom version of your furry friend! They are handmade and airbrushed to completely match your pet. You can customize their sitting position, ears, and more so it best represents your best bud. 

It's a great way to remember a favorite family pet who is no longer with you. As long as you have one photo they can create a clone! The more photos you provide the better detail it will have. 

Is it only for dogs?

You can get a Cuddle Clone of ANY animal! If you check their gallery you'll see everything from cats and dogs to horses and bunnies! I even saw a chicken!

Do they only make stuffed animals?

Nope! You can get figurines, slippers, stockings, golf club covers, blankets, mugs and more! If I had two pets I would probably want to get the slippers and do one of each!

How do I order a Cuddle Clone?

 

Pet Details

The process starts with creating a profile. First you will name your pet, select the type of animal, breed, etc. Next you will upload photos and select your customization options. For dogs, options include eye color as well as ear, mouth, body and tail positions.

Photos

Photos are the key to getting your clone to look exactly like your pet! You only need one photo but you can upload as many as 10 plus 3 detail shots of "distinguishing characteristics" your pet has.  They ask you to give the following photos: Face, Fur Color, Right Side, Backside, Left Side, Chest, Tail, Back of Neck, and Feet.

 

For Layla's three extra photos I used the white spot under her neck and a little white patch on her chest. Along with these detail photos you can describe what you want to focus on.

If your pet has passed away you can add a zippered pouch for $20 where you can store your pet's ashes or a photo/memory of them. I have not seen one with this option but it looks like the zipper is on the chest so it may be fairly noticeable.

 

Discounts?

There are a few ways to get discounts on your Cuddle Clone plush. First, they usually have a 10% off code for your first purchase. Second, wait for Black Friday like I did! I was able to combine both discounts. You can also google codes to try if you aren't prompted on the Cuddle Clones site.

 

If you have multiple people who want a clone of the same pet they will discount you $30 for each additional. This cannot be used on separate pets, it has to be the same pet made twice.

 

Post-Order Editing

After I ordered I realized I used two of the same photo for my "details" shots so I started a chat and was able to add extra photos for the artists to refer to.  Good to know if you need to add additional to photos than the spots provided or make a mistake.

What happens after I order my Cuddle Clone?

The regular delivery time for Cuddle Clones is 8 weeks, you can pay an up-charge to get it as soon as 2 weeks, but it will cost you quite a bit more.

 

Once you purchase, you will get an email confirmation (obviously) of your order. I ordered during busy holiday season so it was about two weeks before I got an email telling me that one of their "talented designers has started working on the pattern for Layla." I was also informed of the process to complete my Cuddle Clone:

 

Once the custom pattern has been completed, it will move on to sewing and stuffing before being assigned to one of our amazing airbrush artists for its final customizations!

Next up was the email telling me "Your Plush Clone of Layla has passed our quality control inspection and has been sent to our headquarters for final packaging!"  

The plush was made in China and then shipped to the Cuddle Clones headquarters in Kansas before finally being shipped out to me.

 

I ordered my Cuddle Clone on November 25th so I didn't think I was going to get Layla until January 19th going by their 8-week average. She arrived on January 3rd! It was actually supposed to be delivered on December 31st but the post office had some delays. So it took about 5 weeks to arrive if we remove the post office delay.

 

Is a Cuddle Clone worth it?

 

YES! I think it was totally worth it for me to have a version of Layla to cherish forever. I will say I would wait for a sale, if possible. $250 is still a lot of money, especially when you add in the $20 shipping. I paid $189 for my Clone plus got 10% off with a coupon code. But the $20 shipping brought the total back up to $190, ha ha. Luckily I had advertising money from the blog so I didn't feel as bad. PLUS I feel like since I wanted it for so long it was a justified buy.

So yes, if you love your pet and want to always have them with you, this is a great way to do it. It will look almost exactly like your pet so I think the price premium makes that more worth it than buying a generic stuffed version or statue of the breed. This is especially handy if you have a mixed breed dog like Layla!

 

I'm very happy with how she turned out. The only complaint I have is her snout could be a little longer, but that is a small issue in comparison to how she turned out!

Plus, every purchase provides 3 meals and a toy to a shelter pet. How cute is that? They also donate to a different animal-wellness organization/shelter each month.

 If you have any questions I didn't cover feel free to comment and I'll add to the post!